Data to Transform UK Rail Reliability

The English government have recently demanded that rail companies should work harder and smarter with data to make trains more reliable.

With the modern age of data constantly evolving, it is becoming more expected of companies to utilise it’s potential, with predictive analytics and AI allowing companies to take their forecasting to new levels; if it is used correctly that is.

UK rail is the latest industry to take the spotlight with harnessing the massive potential of data, as the government have now said that train companies should be doing more with their data and it’s growing potential, to combat the delays, cancellations and stressful journeys that hamper UK rail.

With data now holding huge power in travel, and opening up new doors to providing a quality user experience, rail companies are able (and expected to) utilise the huge potential to improve apps. This allows companies to bridge the gap of confusion between the control office and rail users; ultimately reducing the number of problems that the public face with delays and other unexpected events.

Doing this will not be able to reduce the number of unexpected errors that British Rail have to deal with on a daily basis, but it will make solving problems more efficient and effective, by allowing train companies to forecast potential problems before they arise and avert issues wherever possible.

Ultimately, the boost in clarity between companies and users is a huge move for rail, with the number of rail users steadily growing, which naturally creates problems. Paul Plummer, chief executive of the Rail Delivery Group has said that the end goal of the adaptation to a data driven rail is to give “More timely information and less time spent waiting, helping to put customers in charge”.

This shift towards a data driven rail network is a prime example of the huge potential that data holds for society down to the huge amount of diversity that data holds and it’s rapid rate of progression.